Stay Strong
by oxynclaire
Summary: Being a Maou means possessing the highly desirable strongest maryoku. With evil entities looming to take over his power, Yuuri has to stay strong; not only for his own sake, but also the people trusting in him. Well, in hard times, there is always someone you can turn to, right? No pairing.
1. Chapter 1: The Beginning

Hello! oxynclaire here! :)

It's my first fanfic and I'm so happy to join this community!

This story is the continuation of the anime episodes 40-41. Maybe you guys can watch them before reading my story. The beginning of the story is taken partly from those episodes, though I changed things here and there.

Well, now please read on! I hope you like this story!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Kyou Kara Maou (I wish I do).

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 1: The Beginning_

Dark aura surrounded the figure in black cloth, draped over the entire body. An evil smirk crept up as the crystal ball – the only thing there in the cave, glowed and showed an image of a strange red symbol on someone's body. Starting from the centre of the chest, the marking extended to the abdomen. When some chanting is heard, as soft as it might be, the symbol would glow and it seemed to harm the person possessing it.

"Kukuku... Soon, you and your power shall be mine."

"Just wait patiently for me..."

* * *

Finally, yes finally, Yuuri would get the answer to the questions that had been bugging his mind. All those sleepless nights of finding the reason why his most trusted person betrayed him would come to an end today. Well, of course he did not find his godfather in the best condition; but that was enough for him. As long as he could talk to him, hear his reassuring pledge of loyalty, and feel that he was safe beside him, that was enough.

"Conrad, this time... you will surely come back, right? To Shin Makoku..." Yuuri said hopefully.

"I can't do that," that was the short reply from Conrart who was lying on his back, energy drained by injuries from Dai Shimaron's arrows.

"Huh?" Yuuri stared wide-eyed at Conrart.

Returning Yuuri's gaze, Conrart looked into Yuuri's eyes with a deep regret, "Not after betraying you, Heika."

"Huh? But no one is going to hold back against you!" Yuuri cut short.

"I'm afraid that I haven't fully completed the task given by Shinou-heika," Conrart continued, directing his brown eyes to the sky above. Ah, this would be a wonderful sunset if only they were here for picnic or some joyful moment.

"Is that why? Is that why you betrayed me, Conrad? That's it, isn't it? Conrad...?" Yuuri could not stop asking. This was the time that he had been longing for days, the day when he could finally go home to Shin Makoku with his loyal protector; no, Conrart is his family whom he truly cares for. So why did all these obstacles still exist and try to prevent his desired reunion with Conrart?

"Besides that... I'm... already..." two lids dropped, covering the kind eyes that Yuuri loves as Conrart's words left his mouth.

"Uh..." Wolfram could only gasp as he witnessed his brother gave in to exhaustion.

"No, don't! You can't die now, you just can't!" Lady Lyla started "Yuuri wants to bring peace into this world! If you really trust him, then isn't it your duty to stay beside him and see all that come into reality?"

"You said it yourself that protecting Yuuri was..."

Voices faded into nothingness and Yuuri's vision was enshrouded with a familiar blue glow. He extended his hand over Conrart's chest, rising and falling slowly as Conrart's breath steadied. Yuuri's palm emitted the blue maryoku and it shone brighter and brighter.

'A bit more. Just a little bit longer until all those wounds are completely healed,' Yuuri spoke to his mind as he kept on giving out his maryoku to make sure that Conrart's life would not be in danger. 'Please hold on, you need to save him now.'

Yuuri started to feel the world spun around him and his head was getting heavier as time passed by. He did not hear anything, did not feel anything as his body swayed, though he was kneeling and using one hand to anchor him to the ground. All he knew was that a single tear rolled down on Conrart's cheek before everything was pitch-black.

* * *

'Uhm, warm and soft...' that was the first thing that came into Yuuri's mind as he felt his consciousness coming back. His whole body seemed to be so stiff. He could barely move his limbs, let alone sitting up on likely a bed he was lying on.

'Well, first step is open your eyes.' Yuuri's eyes fluttered for a moment before he could fully open them. 'Green blanket, white bed, a fireplace...' Yuuri took note of the details of his surrounding and even though he felt very weak, he could immediately recognise that this was not Blood Pledge Castle.

A flash of memory came into Yuuri's mind where Conrart was averting his eyes from Yuuri. Realisation dawned on him that Conrart's life might be on the line as he slept peacefully on this so comfortable bed. Without further ado, Yuuri mustered his strength and pushed the blanket aside, getting down from the bed.

He almost stumbled a few times as he ploughed on crossing the large room he was in, towards the silver door at the other end of the room. Opening the door, he hit a sturdy figure wearing all green attire.

"What are you doing? You should be on your bed," Gwendal said with his usual monotonous voice, walking forward and forcing Yuuri to step back into the room.

"There's no time for that now! Where's Conrad? Is he okay? I want to see him now," Yuuri responded. He could not understand better, why do people seem to be bothered only about him when there is another person dying near them?

Upon getting no answer, Yuuri continued to push on, "What's wrong? Don't tell me he's in danger now. Where is he? He..."

"He's well alive in this castle," Gwendal spoke before Yuuri finished his sentence. At least Gwendal hoped this might relax his little Maou.

"Is that so? I'm glad then," a sense of relief filled Yuuri's chest when he heard Gwendal's answer, "I was so worried..."

"Heika!"

"Yuuri!"

The two protective men quickly got to Yuuri's side and grabbed his arms to balance him before he fell down as the light-headedness returned to him.

"Heika, please get back and rest. It must be so exhausting for you to use a large amount of maryoku in unfamiliar territory," Gunter tried to persuade his ever-persistent Maou.

"It's okay. I'm alright. Anyway, where's Conrad? Who's taking care of him now? Was he really badly hurt?" a train of questions was directed towards whoever has the answers for them.

"Shibuya..." Murata mumbled and Wolfram glanced at him. Both of them knew that the likelihood was that Yuuri did not remember what he had done while he was in the Maou form.

Gunter then explained to Yuuri how Conrart was kept in the separate part of the castle, to which Yuuri demanded the reason for putting Conrart under such a tight guard, as if Conrart was a world-class criminal under a death penalty. Gwendal's remark did not help either. None of the explanations deterred Yuuri from going out to see Conrart for himself. Only when Lady Lyla came into the room and assured Yuuri that such act was done for Conrart's safety as well did he calm down.

Moreover, now that Francia has agreed to ally with Shin Makoku, Yuuri must deal with his duty as a Maou. Well, at least now that Yuuri knew that this was one of the biggest alliances with a human country, one which no demons had ever thought about, he could focus on making his dream into reality – peace in the whole world.

The formality had gone smoothly and at night, Yuuri strolled down the garden with Murata and Wolfram. They were discussing about what would happen to Conrart until Murata muttered something unrelated to their current conversation and Yozak appeared before them.

Yozak informed the three that Conrart had run away from the castle. All Yuuri believed was that Conrart was going to return to Shin Makoku with him and he could not take any more of this separation. All he wanted was Conrart by his side. Just that. He did not mind about Conrart's betrayal. After all, he had already forgiven him and nothing would make him take back his words.

Upon finding Conrart in the forest, Yuuri figured out the reason behind Conrart's persistence of leaving Yuuri. Yuuri refused to let Conrart go and still asked him to come back with him. So did the rest of the people who were with them.

Soon after, Francia soldiers led by Lady Lyla arrived under King Antoine's command. Francia decided that Conrart was exiled from the country. Although exile sounded harsh, it indeed gave benefit to everyone, including Yuuri and Conrart. Conrart would not be put under Francia's arrest and he could finally go home to Shin Makoku with Yuuri as what he had promised his godson.

Just when some problems got resolved, another one of them appeared. White-hot pain suddenly seared through Yuuri's gut, reaching out to his chest. Yuuri gasped and clutched his body. He could not even mutter a single word as his knees buckled. Blurred images and his world ended in darkness. Again.

* * *

"Yuuri!" Wolfram shouted when he saw his fiancé suddenly went limp. Good thing he was standing near Yuuri that he could catch Yuuri before that seemingly fragile body hit the ground hard.

"Are you okay?!" Wolfram shook the motionless Maou in his hands. He realised that Yuuri's face signified an extreme pain. Just in a blink of an eye, suddenly Yuuri's temperature shot up and all the healthiness was drained from him together with the colours on his face.

Everyone surrounded the now unconscious Maou and they quickly got themselves each a horse to bring him back to the castle as soon as possible to tend him. Things turned in the most unexpected way and all they could hope was that Yuuri's life would not be at risk.

* * *

Well, that's chapter 1 for you! I'm sorry if you might not get a clear idea of where this story is gonna be. But I promise you that starting from the next chapter, you will be able to sort of guess what's on my mind.

Please review too! I would gladly accept any comments and suggestions! Hehe newbie needs some advice for improvements!

Oh and is the length of the chapter too short? I read a lot of fanfictions, but I can't really gauge the just nice length for y'all. So yeah, you can tell me what you prefer.

Until next time! ;)


	2. Chapter 2: The Call

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kyou Kara Maou

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 2: The Call_

"How is he Gisella?" worry painted all over Gunter's face. His heart broke as the recently recovered Maou fell ill again. If he could choose, he did not mind being the one suffering as long as his beloved pupil was safe and sound. How he wished to the Shinou that all these episodes of fainting would come to an end soon.

"I can't seem to find anything wrong with him, Otou-san," the green-haired court physician replied while the green glow on her hand traced the Maou's body in an attempt to figure out what caused him to lose consciousness the day before. The same worry was also etched on her face. Her eyes were fixated on her King and she tried to examine him all over again.

The party who left for Dai Shimaron reached Shin Makoku early in the morning. It was a pleasant thing to see the Maou's long lost protector was back with everyone again. Days without him had successfully stolen the heart-warming smile from the King. Now that he was here beside Yuuri, the castle would finally regain its liveliness again.

Gisella noticed something was wrong as she welcomed the entourage. The usual cheery voice of Yuuri was absent and as much as they were happy with Conrart's return, their faces were not in the mood of rejoicing. Something was definitely amiss.

It was Gunter, who stepped in first and ordered for the King's private bedroom to be prepared, who allowed Gisella to figure things out. From what Gunter filled her in, Yuuri was perfectly fine until he suddenly grimaced in pain and passed out with high fever accompanying. Francia's court physician tried to help, but he did not have the capacity to use maryoku, rendering him unable to accurately examine the Maou. In the end, all they could do were attempting to bring Yuuri's fever down and reduce his pain with some medicinal herbs. Fortunately, when they left Francia earlier this day, Yuuri's fever had gone down and he did not seem to in pain anymore. However, throughout the trip and even until this moment, he remained unconscious.

"Well, I think we can only wait until Shibuya wakes up," the Soukoku Daikenja concluded.

As much as anyone wanted to object, they could not do anything else. Silent prayers filled everyone's mind as they really have no clue about Yuuri's condition. It did hurt them when they saw their King, the one who had transformed demon kingdom into a magnanimous rather than merciless kingdom, was lying still on his bed. How they missed their King's infectious smile and joyful laughter, even when he was only unconscious for less than a day.

"I'm going to finish the undone paperwork. Gunter," Gwendal called for Gunter as he signalled that it was the time for them to leave now. Even though he seemed to be so emotionless, deep inside he was really concerned about Yuuri. He cared for Yuuri regardless of his utter annoyance when Yuuri escaped his responsibility for that mountainous paperwork. Nevertheless, staying here would do no good for anyone. So he should just get going with his job.

Gunter spared a moment to glance over his King and he mumbled, "Please get well soon, Heika," before he followed Gwendal out of the room.

One by one, people left the room. Only Wolfram remained beside Yuuri now.

'Wimp, you better wake up soon or I'll accuse you of flirting with someone in your dream,' Wolfram thought to himself, trying to push aside the unwanted possibilities which were coming into and going out of his mind. No, he did not want to think of the bad things. He was too afraid to lose his fiancé. No matter how Wolfram agreed that his engagement was purely accident, he admitted that he began to develop feelings for Yuuri and he respected Yuuri so much more now.

Wolfram rubbed Yuuri's hand gently in his, hoping that this would bring Yuuri back to him. He heard a lot that when someone is unconscious or in a coma, physical contact and communication are important. Regardless of how futile one thinks about interacting with someone unable to respond, such interaction indeed affect the catatonic person in some intangible ways. Well, that was what he was going to do. He would stay beside Yuuri until those jet-black eyes would open again.

Minutes passed into hours and nothing has changed. People occasionally came into Yuuri's room, checking on him, only to find Wolfram not budging from his original position beside the still sleeping King. It did not matter. After all that had happened before, everyone trusted their King that he would stay strong and wake up at a point of time.

* * *

Birds chirped their song under the bright sunny day. It was the beginning of another day in Shin Makoku. Everything seemed to be normal, except that it was rather quiet in the castle; or maybe quietness had been the normal since Conrart left before. Soldiers trained more seriously with tense expression on their faces, maids hurriedly did their chores without their usual titbits of gossip shared as they passed one another in the corridors, and more predominantly, there were more people gathering in the King's chamber aside from its usual occupants.

Another daily round checks of the King's condition, just like what had always happened every time the King passed out for days. Even without any reminder, anyone close to the Maou would know the time when Gisella would visit Yuuri. It became like a morning assembly routine for them to find out about any improvements or – hopefully not – deteriorations on the Maou's health.

A sigh from Gisella was enough as a full-length report on the Maou's health to everyone who came to his room. No change, nothing. Although they were glad that Yuuri's condition did not worsen, they could not help but to hope that at least they could hear a piece of happy news about Yuuri. Even if Yuuri was unable to do anything, his waking up was good enough to add a tinge of spirit to do their usual mundane works. Certainly, Yuuri's existence has become an inseparable part of everyone's lives in the castle.

Just when everyone was going to leave Yuuri's room for their respective responsibilities, the blond prince shouted, "Yuuri!" – One single word that kind of have the power to gather everyone. Like a pre-rehearsed act of a movie, everyone turned back and started to fill in the room again.

"He squeezed my hand just now!" Wolfram scanned through everyone's faces before turning back to Yuuri.

"Yuuri, can you hear me?" he spoke with a softer voice now, realising that he was being too loud for someone who might just wake up, "Please open your eyes. We... I can't take this anymore... Please, Yuuri..."

As though the Shinou heard his prayers, black orbs slowly came into view. Glassy at first, as the two eyelids flipped a few times, and then they became focused on another pair of enchanting emerald eyes. A wide smile appeared on the too beautiful face for a boy, followed by a bear hug as Wolfram leapt towards Yuuri – mindful that Yuuri was still weak.

"Yuuri! I'm so glad! Finally you're awake!"

"Ano... Wolfram..." Yuuri spoke haltingly, "I can't... breathe..."

"Ara, I'm so sorry!" Wolfram immediately let go of Yuuri, realising that he might choke the Maou into another few days of sleeping. Yuuri then sat up on his bed.

"Heika, how are you feeling?" Gisella got into her usual spot when she examined the King.

"Err... Very fine actually," Yuuri stretched his arms and straightened up his back, "Feels as if I just woke up from a very long sleep."

"Yeah, actually you did sleep for quite long this time round, Bocchan," Yozak supplied, "about two days actually."

"Eehhh? That long? What happened to me?" there went Yuuri's characteristic comical shock.

"We also don't know, Bocchan. But glad that you're finally awake now."

Yuuri looked around him; he saw everyone was there, relieved at his awakening. He was really glad that he has such wonderful friends or even family in this alternate world. The first time he came into this world – or flushed into this world to be exact – he thought he was going to suffer a pitiful death soon. He knew nothing about this strange place, hell he could not even understand every single word the people said around him. It was until the hidden language in his mind was awakened, followed by Conrart's appearance that he discovered a chance of survival in this world. Unfavourable events did happen, but overall, he was glad he could find his place in Shin Makoku.

"Ah, that means I haven't been exercising for days. Conrad, shall we go for a jog? It's not too late right?" Yuuri looked at his nazukeoya.

"Well, of course not. But are you sure you're okay? Shouldn't you be resting for a bit more?" a charming smile pasted on Conrart's face. He was glad to find nothing was wrong with his godson, but at the same time, he could not just dismiss the concern about his godson's health.

"I feel very fine. Come on, let's go!" Yuuri put his blanket aside, ready to jump down the bed and get changed.

"Ah wait, Heika! At least let me examine you for a short while," Gisella stopped Yuuri. As his personal health advisor, she could not take chance on her King's condition.

"Okay, okay..." Yuuri remained seated while letting Gisella check on him.

"Ah, Heika... Such a strong spirit you have there. I, Gunter von Christ, am really the most fortunate man in this world to be an eye-witness of Heika's indomitable resilience over hardships. How I wish I could remain on your side to see your ideals come into realisation and I shall..." Gwendal ushered Gunter out of the Maou's chamber as he and everyone knew Gunter's speech would not end until the Maou was out of his sight.

Further down the hall, they could hear, "Ah, Heika! Heikaaa!" and they just sweat-dropped at another of Gunter's monologue. Thank Gwendal that they did not need to watch Gunter's show any longer. One could not stop thinking, how Gunter managed to get his reputation as an excellent swordsman and renowned wiseman in the kingdom.

* * *

"Err... Conrad? Is this really necessary?" Yuuri showed his reluctance to attend the banquet held by Lord Stoffel von Spitzberg together with this many advisors and a platoon of soldiers.

"Well, Heika, if I could choose, I would even like you to not come at all," Conrart responded to his King. He was actually unwilling to let Yuuri attend the banquet because he still could not trust Stoffel's sincerity. He suspected that this might just be another of Stoffel's propaganda to gain power from the Maou. However, it was impolite if Stoffel's invitation for the King was just being dismissed. So in the end, he, along with some other King's advisors decided to come with the King.

"It's Yuuri, nazukeoya. Sigh... Going to a party like going to a war like this... How am I supposed to enjoy myself?" Yuuri grumbled, "And Wolfram, can't you just stop being so grouchy?"

"Aren't you yourself also complaining now?" Wolfram barked. He could not believe that Stoffel dared to act up again and on top of that; his brothers seemed to be playing along Stoffel's plot. Was it not obvious enough that Stoffel has never had any good intentions for whatever he was doing to Yuuri? Why would all of them let Yuuri go to Stoffel's residence?

"Argh, okay fine," Yuuri pouted and chose not to comment some more to avoid any fight with Wolfram.

Days seemed to be going further downhill ever since his recovery. Suddenly an invitation arrived on the Maou's table when he was doing another painful pile of paperwork. It was from Stoffel. Stoffel was going to hold a banquet to celebrate the King's success over forming alliance with large countries. Endless arguments had started from that moment onwards. While some said the King should not come as it might be dangerous – considering Stoffel's attempt to kidnap the King before, others said that if the King did not come, it just proved that the King was biased against Stoffel and Stoffel might use this for another of his plans.

In the end, it was decided that Yuuri would still come for the party on the condition that his advisors would come with him. Yuuri was already rather irritated at this because he did not have a say in this matter. He was the King, but this decision was more like made by his advisors. Who knows if Stoffel might have change?

Upon reaching Stoffel's residence, Yuuri tried to ease the tense atmosphere by admiring Stoffel's garden. Too bad, the only result he got was further accusations against Stoffel and he could only sigh at it. Apparently it was harder that what he thought to resolve the long-existing conflicts between the two parties, since Lady Cheri's reign.

'Gosh, I hope I can survive this,' Yuuri thought in defeat.

The banquet went on smoothly with Stoffel, as expected, constantly praising Yuuri until Yuuri felt uncomfortable at the never-ending flattery. Aside from that, there was nothing irregular at all.

Looking around at his companions, Yuuri did not find them relaxed a single bit. Though they were rather far away from Yuuri as he sat on one corner, he found them stealing a glance at him every now and then. They appeared to be having conversations with other people, but their eyes remained fixed on Yuuri.

Suddenly, the similar burning sensation reached for Yuuri's chest again.

'Oh no! Not now!' Yuuri panicked. Of all the other times, why did it have to happen now? The situation was already bad enough and he did not want to aggravate it.

Yuuri tried his best to hide the pain that was toying with him. He put on his so-called poker face and sat straight, which did not help to relieve his pain. Ah, how he wished that there was another strange tradition in this world that slumping down on your chair was a gesture of appreciation or something, such that he could ease his agony without attracting unnecessary attention.

Wolfram came over to Yuuri and Yuuri struggled to maintain his act.

"Ne, Yuuri..." Wolfram started, "Umm... Okay. I think I might have been thinking too much. This time round, Stoffel doesn't seem to keep any plans up his sleeve."

"Di-didn't I tell you that?" Yuuri luckily managed to cover up his stutter as the pain intensified.

"Yeah... I guess you're right. Well, I couldn't help. You're too often being so naive and wimpy until I got to step in to help you," Wolfram's usual high self-esteem could be heard clearly, to which Yuuri was glad that Wolfram was no longer exasperated by his coming for the banquet.

"Shall we go for some dessert? I want to try the parfait over there," Wolfram pointed to one side where the appetising frozen dessert was, if only there was no annoying throbbing in Yuuri's gut.

"Oh, okay. Sure..." Yuuri could not reject because it would just raise suspicion and bring forward more questions on him. The longer they talked, the harder it was for Yuuri to hold his fine outlook. So it was better if he just went along with Wolfram.

The only thing that Yuuri failed to calculate beforehand was that the heightening agony could successfully make his legs tremble. Halfway to the dessert section, Yuuri held Wolfram's hand that was guiding him tighter before he tripped and finally collapsed onto the carpeted floor.

Yuuri finally gave in to his suffering as voices around him turned into incomprehensible static. Before he completely lost his grip on consciousness, he vaguely recognised Wolfram grabbed him and lowered him slowly to the ground. Then some people came over and someone in brown carried him out of the banqueting hall.

* * *

"There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with him," Gisella concluded. She just finished examining her King again and obtained the same result as that for the previous case.

"But, something must be wrong since this is not the first time!" Gunter denied Gisella's finding.

"I'm sorry, but I really can't figure out what causes this," Gisella looked at Yuuri – who was squirming in agony a moment ago – regretfully. All she could do was alleviating Yuuri's pain as best as she could without knowing the reason behind it. Fortunately, there was not any fever coming along.

"Yuuri..." holding Yuuri's hand, worry covered Wolfram's face. He did not mind staying up the whole night, holding Yuuri's hand at the expense of his own rest; but he could not stand being unable to do anything to help Yuuri.

When Yuuri and Wolfram were walking to get the dessert, Wolfram felt Yuuri tightened the grip on his hand. He turned around just in time to see Yuuri fell down and quickly grabbed Yuuri's upper arms. He felt like getting a heart attack as he cried out Yuuri's name. The Maou's advisors quickly gathered around and Conrart finally carried him out of the room.

They had explained to Stoffel that Yuuri was not feeling well recently and they would like to head back to Blood Pledge Castle right away. For once, they could feel Stoffel was genuinely concerned for Yuuri – regardless of whether the true motive might be for his own gain. Nevertheless, they were glad that there was no further questioning or holding of the Maou longer in Stoffel's residence.

Finally, everyone decided that they should just rest for the night, hoping that by the next day, Yuuri would be awake and maybe they could get some clues about his fits. As everyone left the King's chamber, Wolfram stayed and climbed the bed over to his usual side. It was harder for him to fall asleep now that he felt he needed to watch over Yuuri. Fatigue took over Wolfram only when it was further into the midnight.

* * *

Deep into the night, the crescent moon provided the little light to the dark world. A hooded figure in black was staring intensely onto a crystal ball, murmuring some chanting. The crystal ball showed an image of a young man with a glowing red symbol on his body sleeping.

More chanting and the young man opened his eyes – his unseeing eyes. He got up from his bed and walked like the dead, out of his room and further down the dark corridor. He kept on walking, leaving the castle where he stayed, towards the creepy forest, looming to swallow anyone who dared to go into it.

Shivers as the only thing protecting him for the cold night was his pyjamas, scratches on his hands from the sharp branches, as well as cuts and grazes on his bare feet were ignored as he walked further and further into the darkness where nobody would likely be able to find him.

* * *

Conrart was getting ready to sleep after he finished his usual patrol in the castle. He looked at the unusually eerie crescent moon which gave him a rather unpleasant feeling today. Diverting his eyes onto the garden, he saw someone so familiar in blue outfit.

"Yuuri..?" Conrart squinted his eyes to get a better look in the darkness before a knock on his door pulled his attention away.

"Kakka," a soldier appeared before Conrart as he opened the door.

"What is it?" Conrart asked.

"We saw Heika heading out of the castle. We tried to talk to him but there was no response," the soldier reported to Conrart, confirming Conrart's suspicion.

"I'll go after him. Prepare my horse and inform Lord von Voltaire right away," Conrart replied.

"Yes, Kakka," the soldier bowed and he quickly rushed to do as what Conrart had ordered him to.

Conrart moved back into his room and immediately changed back to his usual military uniform. He took his sword, the Sword of Life, which he had sworn to protect Yuuri with it. He knew something bad might happen following Yuuri's fits and now this. Wasting no other seconds, Conrart hurried to the foyer where he saw both Gwendal and Gunter there.

"I'm going to find him now," Conrart told both of them.

"Oh how could this happen?" Gunter started to panic.

"Please don't spread this around for now. I will bring Heika back as soon as I find him," Conrart continued.

"Be careful," the long silent Gwendal finally spoke, eyes deep into Conrart's.

"I will," Conrart answered as he permitted himself to get to his horse and galloped towards the direction where Yuuri left.

In the foyer, Gunter's panic was totally ignored by Gwendal. All Gwendal could wish was for Yuuri to be safe and more importantly, for his brother too. He knew Conrart was no weak man. Conrart was the Lion of Luttenburg, the one who survived the deadly battle. However, the bad premonition that has been haunting him made him more cautious towards Conrart's safety.

'Shinou, please keep them safe.'

* * *

There goes chapter 2!

I decided to put a title for each chapter. I think it gives readers a better impression of the main idea behind each chapter (or does it not?). I also double the length of this chapter. Hope you're satisfied with it.

Thanks _jayfeather63_ for you review! Haha it felt so good to have my first review.

Oh oh I wanna ask too! Do you prefer me using the Japanese form of address (e.g Heika, Geika) or the English one (e.g. Your Highness, Your Excellency)?

Please review this one too! I would be really glad to find out whether my ideas are accepted.

So thanks for reading and see y'all on the next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3: I'm Sorry

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kyou Kara Maou

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 3: I'm Sorry_

The sound of horse neighing and its footsteps accompanied Conrart in his search for Yuuri. He was not very sure where Yuuri had gone to because the moment he stepped out of the castle, Yuuri was nowhere to be seen. The only direction he could gather was that Yuuri was heading towards the large forest next to Shin Makoku. Nobody dared to follow him because the forest was infamous for its complicated route and deadly traps which were purportedly set by a hidden occult in the forest.

That was one of the worst things Conrart could expect from Yuuri, to head to a dangerous place alone when he was rather weak. Conrart cantered nearer to the dark forest and the unease in his gut became more prominent as he seemingly faced the imminent danger ahead. The concern for Yuuri's safety far outweighed his own anxiety. Nothing could stop Conrart's determination to take Yuuri back to the castle safely.

As Conrart approached the forest, the horse he was on suddenly halted with a whimper. Conrart looked forward, trying to guess what made his horse reluctant to move. All he could see was darkness. After some moment, he realised that it might be best if he just walked on foot because riding a horse in the dark could risk him falling down and injuring himself.

Conrart dismounted from his horse and tied the rein onto a tree. Slowly he stepped into the forest, being mindful of the thorny plants and sharp branches on the ground. The thought of Yuuri walking barefooted and with his thin pyjamas made Conrart even more worried for him. For him who was wearing his usual military uniform and with his more sturdy build, inside the forest was quite cold, enough to make him shiver even if it was only a little. Let alone Yuuri, wearing improper attire and his frailty currently.

Depending mainly on his intuition, Conrart travelled further into the darkness, taking note as much as possible of his passage under the limited light from the moon. Merely following an uncertain feeling was an unacceptable way for doing a soldier's task. However, often enough, Conrart's feeling for Yuuri proved to be accurate. So, there was no reason against trusting it now. Conrart hoped he could find Yuuri soon. The deeper into the forest, the more dangerous it was.

A familiar blue figure came into Conrart's view. He was limping and his clothes were tattered.

"Heika!" Conrart shouted.

There was no response, not even a sign to show that Yuuri was aware that there was someone calling for him.

"Yuuri!" Conrart finally chose Yuuri's name, hoping that Yuuri would acknowledge him.

As Conrart strode towards Yuuri, Yuuri turned around and Conrart could see his jet-black eyes were staring blankly. No more of his usual cheerfulness, no feeling, and not even any consciousness.

When Conrart approached nearer to Yuuri, suddenly there was an invisible force binding him. It was so strong that no matter how hard Conrart struggled, he still could not move. He tried to reach for his sword to no avail. Desperately he looked to Yuuri, who was becoming further and further away from him again. Yuuri kept on walking even when his body was already covered with bleeding scratches. Conrart mentally cursed to himself, at his inability to break free from this unseen force.

Just when Yuuri disappeared from Conrart's view into the darkness, another force came and struck him right on his gut. Conrart coughed as the air was pushed out of him. He gazed around, trying to figure out the source of the force; but he could see nothing else, only black shadows of the trees and bushes. He could not even make out a shadow of a person.

One force struck his face and in a moment, forces after forces came and hit him in every part of his body. Conrart gasped as the pain started to become unbearable. He was a soldier, a resilient one to be precise. Nevertheless, he was still a normal man. Being continuously hit with no chance of dodging has its toll on Conrart's stamina. The forces did not ease up a single bit as Conrart felt he was losing grip on consciousness.

'Bad, this is bad,' Conrart thought to himself. He was supposed to save Yuuri and now in the end he was the one needing a rescue.

A particular force hit his back and it was the most painful so far. Conrart could not help but to let out a scream as he arched his back in his restraint. Soon after, his eyes lost focus and he dropped to the ground hard.

* * *

The first thing he realised as he came round was the stinging pain in his whole body. Looking at himself, he did not know what had happened to him until he got so many wounds and he also did not know where he was. As he became more aware of his surrounding, he knew he was in a forest – but where?

A familiar voice came as a scream to him and he jerked his head towards the direction of the source. Ignoring all the pain, Yuuri ran towards that direction. Even when he was not able to hear clearly, he knew that it was Conrart's scream. Something bad must be happening such that Conrart screamed so loud.

Upon reaching a small clearing, Yuuri saw his godfather laid on his stomach on the ground. His heartbeat started to rush as fear began to fill his chest.

"Conrad..?" Yuuri slowly approached him.

Yuuri crouched near Conrart and touched him gently. He could hear a weak grunt from Conrart's mouth and Conrart shifted a bit. Taking a closer look to Conrart's feature under the dim moonlight, Yuuri realised that Conrart was injured, heavily injured. Yuuri could faintly see some bruises on parts of Conrart's hand and face.

As Yuuri tried to heal him, he felt someone approached them. It was slow and steady footsteps; as if the person knew exactly where they were and that they had no chance of running away. Yuuri continued to heal Conrart and he averted his eyes around, watching out if the person was really coming to them.

It was well understood that in his current condition, Yuuri did not have a chance to put a fight if the one approaching them was someone with evil intent. Moreover, he felt rather weak and as he gave a lot of his maryoku to heal Conrart, his own injuries seemed to be getting more painful for him.

"Where ... he?"

"This ... he's ... clearing."

"Right, ... catch ... soon as possible."

Yuuri ducked his head as he heard some whispers followed by brisk footsteps. He was contemplating of what to do. He could not leave Conrart here alone to be caught by whoever searching for them. However, he was also not strong enough to carry Conrart all the way out of the forest – and more importantly, he did not even know where exactly he was.

When Yuuri was about to get up, a hand gripped his hand firmly. Apparently Conrart stirred and weakly he shook his head. His face clearly showed disapproval at whatever Yuuri finally decided to do. Even when Conrart was powerless and he could not protect Yuuri, he would never let Yuuri face danger alone. He would rather get caught together with Yuuri than being in safety alone.

Staring wide-eyed at Conrart, at Conrart's unerring intuition, Yuuri was stunned. How could Conrart always guess correctly Yuuri's thoughts and be ever-sensitive towards Yuuri's heart? Was it only because Conrart was his godfather? Was it because of Julia's soul that was inside him? There was always this intangible bond between him and Conrart.

That was it! Yuuri always believed that the bond between him and Conrart would never be broken by anything. He was sure that both of them would eventually return together to Shin Makoku. Thus, he did not mind being in danger as long as Conrart was safe. He could not afford to leave Conrart in loneliness among the enemies. Yes, he would do anything to save his godfather.

The two men exchanged glances, conveying their own messages without words.

'You can't go there, Yuuri. I would not let you face them alone,' Conrart tightened his grip on Yuuri.

'It's okay. I will be fine,' Yuuri smiled at Conrart, to which Conrart was rather surprised at his sudden composure. Normally, Yuuri would be a panicky boy who was prone to making rash decisions. Even so, at this point of time, there was calmness and assurance in his eyes.

With that, Yuuri dissipated the last bit of the blue glow from his hand and he gently let go of Conrart's grip. He tried his best to hide Conrart near the bushes as Conrart's consciousness began to waver again. Conrart wanted to protest but he has no more strength to do so, even if his injuries were partially healed by Yuuri.

Yuuri spared a last glance on Conrart's sleeping form. The bushes should be sufficient to cover him. He took off his necklace – the one Conrart gave him, and put it on Conrart.

'This time round, I hope it would protect you, because I can't be beside you. Be safe, nazukeoya.'

Firmly, Yuuri stepped forward, making him exposed in the clearing. Soon, numerous black-cloaked figures came out of nowhere. They were pointing their fingers at Yuuri and right at that moment, Yuuri could not move at all. This was definitely not majutsu or houjutsu. It has a different feeling on Yuuri.

As he closed his eyes, giving in to his captors, he could hear them muttering about finding the other man. Fortunately, they decided not to bother about the other man as they have gotten their main target and they had injured the other man bad enough. Although Yuuri was scared of his fate, he was glad that they would not do anything to Conrart. Yuuri hoped that Conrart would remain hidden and maybe recover well enough to head back to the castle on his own.

The last thing Yuuri said to himself as his own consciousness was fading was, 'I'm sorry, Conrad, everyone. I hope you will all be safe...'

* * *

Hello! Another update from me!

I'm sorry that this chapter took longer than the previous one and is shorter. I had some family matters to attend to.

Well, expect the next chapter to come in about a week! I will try to finish it as soon as I can! :) I myself am also excited when I was writing this story. Hope y'all feel the same when you read my story!

Thank you, _jayfeather63 _for your continuous support. Really glad for it!

For other readers, please review too! I would love to talk to y'all! :)

See you next time! :D


	4. Chapter 4: Outburst of Grief

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kyou Kara Maou

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 4: Outburst of Grief_

'Phew, lucky there is this sunlight; or else, I will be a pile of minced meat before I can find Taichou,' Yozak muttered to himself. Being one who has the most experience in spying job and surviving in the wilderness, Yozak was assigned earlier in the morning by Gwendal to find Conrart. Seemed like Conrart was searching for Yuuri the night before and he has not returned ever since. To avoid unnecessary confusion, Yozak's task was to be kept a secret currently.

Now that the day was bright, Yozak could see most of those deadly traps in which a small mistake could be fatal for his life. Moreover, he was able to avoid routes with humongous thorny vegetations. Though Yozak knew that his Captain was a strong man, there was still a glint of worry for him because this forest was really more dangerous than it appeared to be.

He had been wondering around the vast area of greeneries for almost two hours now and still did not get any clue of Conrart's position. He hoped that either Conrart found Yuuri and brought him somewhere safe or he was chasing the enemy out of the forest. Even though the intelligence he got was the contrary of his hope – that nobody has seen a man coming out of the forest since the night and that Conrart's horse was still tied near the entrance to the forest, Yozak was still firm on his belief. Days being with Yuuri has taught him about hope when every other things were failing. So, he would not give up until he found his most respected Taichou and more importantly, his best friend.

Upon reaching a small clearing, a small blue sparkle under the bushes attracted Yozak's attention. It felt strange and yet familiar to him. Approaching the light, Yozak could make out a figure lying under the bushes.

"Taichou!" Yozak saw that familiar brown hair and uniform.

"Are you alright? Please hang on!" he cleared the leaves from the top of Conrart's body and supported his back.

"Unh... Yo-zak?" slowly Conrart opened his eyes.

"Taichou, what had happened?" enquired Yozak.

As though he was just being awoken from a dream, Conrart's eyes widened and he grabbed Yozak's shirt, "Yuuri! He's... he's in danger now!"

"Calm down, Taichou. Looks like you were pretty beaten up," Yozak attempted to calm Conrart down because no useful information would come out if the source was panicking.

"Now slowly, what had happened?" Yozak helped Conrart to sit down properly and continued.

"I can't recall it clearly... but... Yuuri..." Conrart's gaze fell upon the necklace that was not supposed to be there, "He must have continued to heal me using this..."

"How is that possible?" Yozak furrowed his eyebrows.

"I was attacked badly by someone unknown," Conrart touched his head, trying his best to remember, "I don't remember anything else, but the last thing I saw was Yuuri going away alone."

Conrart frowned and he utterly blamed himself for being unable to protect Yuuri. He felt so weak now and he could not even stand up on his own. He did not know how much maryoku Yuuri gave to him. However, even if he did not feel any sores in his body, he felt so powerless.

Suddenly, Yozak wrapped his arm around Conrart's back and put Conrart's arm on his shoulder, "Well, I guess you wouldn't be able to go back on your own. So now let's just head back to the castle and make sure you recover fully before we save Bocchan."

Conrart stared at Yozak seriously and he agreed that it was the best thing to do. Using another free hand to grip the von Wincott pendant, he prayed in his heart that Yuuri would remain safe.

* * *

The shining sunray outside the cave meant nothing for the darkness inside. With dim candlelight, black figures were surrounding a man in tattered clothes. The man was bound to chains with his arms stretched out. Hung limply on the chains, Yuuri was asleep of exhaustion.

"Wake him up," a hoarse voice commanded.

With a flick, the restrained man was awake, though he was not fully conscious.

One figure stepped forward and lifted his chin, forcing him to look up.

"We have one final task for you: release your power now," the same hoarse voice came out.

"... ve..." a soft whisper replied.

"What?"

"Never!" the Yuuri shouted even though his voice was shaky.

"Foolish young man!" the black figure seemed annoyed.

Without doing extra movements, there were additional scratches on Yuuri's body and Yuuri could not help but to rumble at the aggravating pain in his whole body. So far, he was always being protected by his loyal advisors. His injuries have never been as many as this and he would always receive a proper treatment immediately. Nevertheless, he was on his own this time round. He would have to bear this agony if he ever wished to survive.

"Pain, isn't it? You who have always been hiding behind other's back, surely have never felt such pain before," the man attacked Yuuri again and again, "If you don't want to suffer anymore, just release your power."

"No..." Yuuri spoke haltingly in between gasps, "I... won't let you... misuse my... power."

"Hmph, we're not misusing, dear Maou. We need to absorb your power for the revelation of the truth," a sinister response came.

"Unhh..." Yuuri stared intently at the cloaked man in front of him and struggled to break free from the chains.

Yuuri was hit once again and he realised that indeed he was such a weak King as he felt he was going to faint again.

'No, Yuuri! You have to be strong!' he encouraged himself to hold on, 'Prove to your people that you are a dependable Maou.'

Yuuri closed his eyes as he prepared for legion attacks directed at him. However, strangely, nothing came to him. Slowly he opened his eyes again to see what was going on. On the verge of losing consciousness, he heard some unintelligible chanting and darkness enveloped him.

"Looks like we have no choice but to resort to this..." the dark figure muttered.

* * *

In the darkness, it was so suffocating and Yuuri began to panic as he could not see the end or the way out of this blindness. The chains binding him were gone, but he still could not move. Desperately Yuuri tried to break free and in the end, it was always the same result; the force was too strong for his weakened form.

Slowly, a figure, followed by many others appeared around him. Though they were blurry, Yuuri could immediately recognise them. They were his loyal comrades. Conrart, Wolfram, Gwendal, Gunter, Yozak, Gisella, everyone were there; even those living faraway, such as Lady Flurin, King Antoine and Hristo Cruyff.

Yuuri managed to pull a smile on his lips. At least, in this pain, his friends were here to support him. Nevertheless, his smile did not last long because he noticed something unusual in them. All of them were frowning at him, some clearly showed disappointment. Much to Yuuri's fear, they began to walk away from him, leaving him alone again in the darkness.

"Everyone... please, don't leave..." Yuuri called out to his friends, to the last person leaving him – Conrart.

Yuuri fell into a deeper sadness. He always believed in his friends and as he had said before, trusting was so much easier than doubting. Some people might comment that Yuuri has a rather strong self-delusion in a good way. He always trusted people's conscience even when reality portrayed otherwise. In fact, Yuuri could never blame his friends. Maybe being around him was dangerous, so he somehow tried to feel happy that at least his friends would be safe.

Soon after he was left on his own, a sharp pain rushed through his head. Unable to bear with it, Yuuri let out a scream and other images started to form around him again. They were worse than being left alone in the dark; they were something Yuuri always tried to prevent and Yuuri could not even bring himself to imagine them.

It was his friends hurting. Yuuri could clearly see everything; whether it was physical or emotional pain inflicted on the people trusting him. As much as he wanted to close his eyes, there was something forcing him to see through everything and his friends pained expressions. It all came back to one reason: Yuuri was the cause of their pain.

Yuuri's heart was shattered into pieces as he realised that it was him responsible for his friends' suffering. It was because of his stubbornness, his naivety, and his weakness.

"Ne... Tell me what I must do..." Yuuri whispered to nobody as more and more gory images filled his eyes.

"Release your power... That's the only way to save them!" a voice answered him.

"But..."

"Don't you want to save them? Or do you care more about your own life rather than them?"

"I... want to save them..."

Yuuri resolved to protect his friends even if in doing so, it cost his own life. Well, he did not care about his own life anymore now. For him, there was no point in living by sacrificing his comrades. He thought that as a King, he should be of help to others, not of a burden.

With a sorrowful cry, Yuuri's power burst out from his body and his surrounding was turned into a blinding white and blue glow.

"I'm sorry, Conrad... I wish... I could see you again..." Yuuri said with tear-stained face and finally closed his eyes into deep slumber.

* * *

"Hahahahaha! I've been waiting for this!" evil laughter echoed in the cave as blue light shone brightly and destroyed the stone cave into ruins.

A black crystal absorbed the blue light until the light completely vanished. Holding the now red crystal, the black figure showed a smirk under his hood. He was extremely satisfied of what he just obtained and he thought he could proceed further for his plans.

Glancing over his shoulder to the limp body hung on the chains, he mockingly felt pity for him. His men followed him out of the ruins and left the man there to die. He had gotten what he wanted and there was no further use of the now powerless man.

* * *

In the oracle's temple, Murata and Ulrike were staring into a crystal ball, depicting a black sky with stars in it. One particular star shone the brightest among others. Suddenly, something like a comet passed through and it seemed to be exploding. Soon after, the white light from the explosion vanished along with the comet, leaving no trace at all.

"Geika..." Ulrike looked at the Great Sage with worry.

"Yeah... This is really bad..." Murata's spectacles gleamed, hiding his expression.

* * *

Hi readers!

Glad to know if you're still reading this! It's harder for me nowadays to find time to write, but it's okay! Trust me, I won't abandon this story! :)

Thank you _jayfeater63, Issm, Guest _(ah you should put a name there ;p)_, _and_ Kikre_! Your reviews really motivate me! :)

Okay, time to write next chapter! See ya!


	5. Chapter 5: I Got You

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kyou Kara Maou

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 5: I Got You_

'Yuuri!' Conrart eyes were flung open and he gasped.

"You're awake?" a heavy voice asked as Conrart shuffled a little on his bed.

"Gwen?" Conrart turned his head towards Gwendal who was sitting near his bed.

"I'm sorry. I failed to bring Yuuri back..." Conrart looked away, ashamed at his failure.

"Nothing else could be done. Seemed like you're dealing with something more troublesome that what we usually deal with," Gwendal replied, helping Conrart to sit properly.

"Did you manage to find him?" Conrart said as he tried to find a comfortable position. Conrart was still on the mend from his latest injury and as he possessed no maryoku, his recovery took a little longer than a pure mazoku.

"No, we don't. We're still searching for him," Gwendal responded and he returned to his seat.

When Conrart was about to speak, somebody knocked on the door.

"Come in," Conrart answered, looking at the door.

"Excuse me," Gunter peeked. As he opened the door, there were Murata, Wolfram, and Yozak as well.

The group came in and everyone looked at one person who was not usually there. They knew that the fact he was there, meant that he got something important to tell them. Judging from the current situation around them and his serious face, it was unlikely a good news for them.

"Well, I guess you probably know why I'm here," Murata began, "It's about Yuuri."

"Ulrike and I found out that there's a high chance Yuuri's power was unleashed a moment ago. The bad news is that there was no trace of it afterwards..." Murata stopped as everyone else gasped.

"But the good news is that we know that Yuuri is still somewhere around that forest," he continued, though what he said did not ease the tense atmosphere in the room.

"So, we need to begin searching right now," he ended.

"I will make necessary arrangements," Gwendal stepped forward and as he was going to leave the room, somebody grabbed his hand.

"I will go to," Conrart determinedly gazed directly into Gwendal's eyes, to which he earned Gwendal's signature deathly glare.

Gwendal saw in Conrart's eyes that his stubborn brother has already taken a resolution and no matter what others do, he would not budge. With a sigh, he closed his eyes and just grumbled. Nobody knew better that Gwendal was worried for his recently injured brother and as what he always did, he attempted to conceal it.

People started to move around to prepare for the search for their dear Maou. Gwendal picked a platoon of soldiers to comb through the outskirts of the forest, while he along with Conrart and Yozak would investigate the rumoured haunted cave deeper into the forest.

The party left the castle for the search, bringing along Gisella for the worst case. Wolfram insisted that he wanted to go as well but apparently an explanation from Conrart and another glare from Gwendal managed to make the young prince stay. No one knew what would happen and all they could do was prepare for the worst while hoping for the best.

* * *

"Kakka, apparently the rumour is true. Somebody indeed saw a blue light deeper into the forest. There were sudden dark clouds around and as soon as the blue light disappeared, the sky cleared; much like what always happened when Bocchan releases his power," Yozak informed Gwendal and Conrart about his finding.

"Let's begin searching immediately then. I hope he is safe," Conrart stood up and got to his horse.

They galloped towards the forest and left their horses to the soldiers' care. They took the same entrance as Yozak did earlier in the morning because it was the only way where Yozak could remember the exact location of the traps and the safe routes. Finally, they reached the small clearing where Yozak had found Conrart.

"From this point onwards, I'm not too sure of the traps," Yozak said.

"Alright, we need to be more cautious now," Conrart concluded as he scanned his surroundings. He remembered the place where Yuuri laid him and figured out the direction where Yuuri went.

"It should be that way," Conrart pointed to his right. The rest nodded and they walked towards it.

Strangely, after minutes of walk, they discovered no traps. It was as though this was a secret passageway guiding them to a certain place; a safe route made for someone important.

Suddenly, Conrart who was behind shouted to the two men in front, "Run!"

As Yozak and Gwendal turned around, black figures appeared and attempted to strangle Conrart. Conrart managed to break free and his necklace glowed. Drawing his sword, he got into a ready stance to fight the black figures who were rather confused at Conrart's ability to free himself.

"Hurry! I will hold them back!" Conrart spared a glance at the two reluctant men.

"Be careful, Taichou!" Yozak finally responded as he and Gwendal ran towards the ruins which they could already see ahead.

Reaching the ruins, both of them were speechless. It was such a wrecked place. The debris resembled a cave formerly and judging from the absence of moss and all sorts of those things, the cave was recently destroyed. The only explanation that they could think of was that Yuuri was the one causing this. Nobody else has such a great power to create massive damage like this other than Yuuri, the Maou himself.

Gwendal and Yozak searched through the ruins with the hope that Yuuri was not buried under these large rocks. They could not imagine what would happen if these rocks were to fall on Yuuri's frail body. No, they even refuse to picture such bad portent for the future of Shin Makoku.

Further down the ruins, there was a large stone wall standing still amidst of the debris. Approaching it, both Gwendal and Yozak could make out the shape of chains attached to it; but they could not see the other end of the chains. Both glanced at each other with concern in their eyes and they nodded as they moved closer to it.

There it is, the worst case they always tried to prevent: their Maou, hung limply on the chains, was covered with wounds. Quickly they ran towards Yuuri and as soon as they saw signs of Yuuri being alive, they were slightly relieved. Nevertheless, Yuuri's condition was so heart-wrenching. That already small body looked even more fragile with numerous wounds on it. Never in their history were the King's protectors failed to fulfil their duty as badly as this.

Yozak cut of the chains easily and Gwendal lowered Yuuri slowly to the ground. Yuuri let out a whimper as Gwendal's hand that was supporting him could not avoid touching an open wound. Gwendal felt very guilty for his King, but he has no choice other than that.

"This is really bad, Kakka. We need to get him to Gisella as soon as possible," Yozak muttered as he examined Yuuri.

Gwendal nodded and he carefully lift Yuuri up to carry him. Another whimper escaped Yuuri's mouth as Gwendal walked and all Gwendal could do was mumbling a soft sorry to Yuuri as he tried to be as gentle as possible while rushing out of the forest.

Yozak led the way well. He remembered clearly every path they went through along with possible traps. There was nobody at the place where they parted with Conrart and Yozak promised to himself that he would personally find Conrart after bringing Yuuri to safety. Within minutes they were out of the forest and soon they reached one safe house where Gisella waited for them.

Gwendal laid Yuuri carefully on a bed and stepped back as Gisella promptly began her treatment for the King. Gwendal decided that he would stand guard outside the room because he was not particularly trained for medical treatment, thus he could not provide much help here. He let Yozak go back to the forest to find Conrart and remind him to be careful too. Well, he felt he was getting rather paranoid, but he could not help it after seeing another one he hold dear was heavily injured.

As Gwendal stood in front of the door, he heard whimpers and groans a few times followed by Gisella's comforting words and apologies. Every time it happened, Gwendal mentally cursed himself because it reminded him of his incompetence for letting his King suffer so much.

Ages of waiting finally came to an end. The door behind him opened with a creak and Gisella appeared. She was carrying a bucket with deep red water and cloths which were turned from white to crimson. Gwendal's eye twitched at such sight and he moved his eyes towards Gisella's instead.

"I finished treating Heika, Kakka. Please keep guard of him for now. I will bring new cloths and warm water for him," Gisella spoke softly, "Heika is in critical condition and he is really weak now. Tonight would be the hardest for him."

"Alright, thank you," Gwendal responded and went into the room.

The sight that welcomed Gwendal in the room was only a little bit better that before. At least, now Yuuri's wounds were wrapped in clean bandages and he wore proper clothes. However, Yuuri still appeared worse that he was when he fainted from using too much maryoku. His face still showed pain and his breath was yet to be steady.

Gwendal softened his gaze and he sat beside Yuuri's bed, slowly caressing Yuuri's hair. People might think it was so disrespectful for a mere advisor to touch the Maou's head, but the situation was very different now. Regardless of how stern Gwendal was to Yuuri, he actually cared so much for Yuuri. He viewed Yuuri as his comrade, his little brother, or even his son – age-wise.

A flash of memory came to Gwendal's mind; a memory of losing someone whom Gwendal thought he hated the person but he actually respected that person so much. He thought he would not grieve for that person, but apparently he did feel a pain in his heart. That person has the largest existence in his heart and he could not forget him no matter what he did. Facing Yuuri now reminded Gwendal of how much he actually did not want to lose anyone he hold dear.

A knock diverted Gwendal from his thoughts. He opened the door and a soldier was standing there.

"Kakka, the spies have come back and they would like to report their findings."

"Right, I will go down soon."

"Yes, Sir!" the soldier immediately went downstairs where to gather the spies.

Gwendal glanced over his shoulder to the sleeping Yuuri, 'I will be downstairs for a while. Please rest for now. It's going to okay, I got you. I will not let this go without being handled properly.'

With that, Gwendal closed the door and went to meet his spies. He wanted to finish it as immediately as possible and go back to guard Yuuri.

* * *

Deep into the night, when nobody else was in the room, Yuuri was wailing and shuffling restlessly on his bed. He was having a vision or a nightmare – Yuuri could not tell – where Conrart was in danger. He questioned what the meaning of this was as he had released his power, which should keep his friends safe. He struggled to reach for him to no avail. He tried to transmit his maryoku, but none was left.

In his desperation, Yuuri was slowly awake. He felt pain throughout his body but he forced himself to move because he needed to save Conrart. There had been many occasions where Conrart was the one injured and yet he still protected Yuuri. So Yuuri was determined to do the same for Conrart and at least repay Conrart's care and kindness for him.

After several failed attempts, Yuuri managed use his elbows to support his body. He brought himself near the edge of the bed. However, instead of getting his feet down first to hold his body in position like what he intended to, Yuuri fell face down from the bed.

Yuuri could see stars in his eyes as the pain, which was already bad enough, was aggravated from the impact with the ground. Thousands of needles were like prickling on every inch of his body. Yuuri groaned, but he had made up his mind; he would go to help Conrart. Wasting no more time he dragged his body using his elbows towards the door. He was determined to bear this pain to save his nazukeoya.

Not even three footsteps from the bed, Yuuri felt his energy was drained from him. His arms were shaking and he could no longer hold his body up. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he was very miserable at his weakness. Before everything faded into darkness once again, Yuuri heard hasty footsteps approaching and some voices calling out to him.

Even in his unconsciousness, Yuuri keep muttering his most treasured protector's name; Conrart.

* * *

Apparently the meeting took longer than what Gwendal expected. While he was satisfied at the intelligence he got, he was also worried because he had left Yuuri for almost two hours now. He kept on glancing at the around, checking if the guards were still in position, checking if anyone suspicious passed the house, checking how late it was in the night, and anything else. It was harder for him to concentrate at the reports as time passed by.

Suddenly, a loud thud was heard and it seemed to be coming from the floor above him. Everyone looked up to the ceiling, trying to guess where that sound came from. As soon as Gwendal realised what might happened, he ran upstairs to Yuuri's room.

Flinging the door, his heartbeat almost stopped as Yuuri's bed was empty. Moving his eyes fast, he found a figure slumped on the ground.

'Damn it!' Gwendal cursed in his thought as he reached for his King.

More wrinkles were formed on Gwendal's forehead as he found trails of tears on his King's face. He heard Yuuri keep mumbling Conrart's name and this just heightened his anxiety. When he carried Yuuri back to the bed, he found out that Yuuri's body was emitting much heat. Yuuri was having a fever.

"Get Gisella, quickly!" Gwendal commanded a soldier who was following him.

Holding Yuuri's hand, Gwendal put it near his forehead and kept on apologising in his thoughts. He prayed to the Shinou that Yuuri would survive the night. Everyone needed Yuuri's existence; they need Yuuri's smile and courage.

* * *

All soldiers could see exhaustion in their commander's face. Gwendal had stayed awake for the whole night and insisted that Yuuri must be brought back to the castle immediately where better medication and treatment could be given to him. Yuuri's life could not be taken for granted and Gwendal promised that he would make sure Yuuri got the best medical treatment Shin Makoku could give.

The previous night was really tough. When Gisella got back to Yuuri's room, she started explaining more thoroughly about Yuuri's condition. Yuuri was not responding to Gisella's maryoku which made the treatment harder for her. Therefore, what Gisella did was merely putting medication on Yuuri's wounds, but she could not help to ease the pain. Moreover, Yuuri's condition was worse than what everyone would think of, thus the herbs she brought was very limited. Gisella concluded that the best thing was to get back to the castle as soon as possible where all resources were there.

Leaving some soldiers around the safe house to wait for Conrart's and Yozak's return, Gwendal travelled back to the castle with Gisella and his personal guards early in the morning. Fortunately, the forest was not very far from the castle and the castle can be reached within hours even with a coach.

Too many things happened within a short time. Gwendal did not bother about what panic might happen in the castle as the people knew the Maou's condition. The only thing that concerned him was Yuuri's safety.

* * *

Here is another chapter!

I finished this quite fast, beyond my own expectation. Haha... I think I was really in the mood for this story.

By the way, I'm sorry if in this chapter, there's hinted spoiler of later episodes. I'll try to minimise it next time! But I thought since Kyou Kara Maou was aired quite a long time ago, most of you would have finished watching it. :p

Oh, in this chapter, I wrote about Gwendal's soft side too. I think Gwendal is really adorable despite his stern look. I like him a lot!

_jayfeather63_: Woohoo! I'm kinda waiting for your review! :D Haha... I know about Hobbit, but haven't watch or read about it. Guess I should do it soon! Oh I finished The Lord of the Rings though!

Please review and see you again!


	6. Chapter 6: The Harbinger

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kyou Kara Maou

* * *

**Stay Strong**

_Chapter 6: The Harbinger_

Thousand years ago, there was a hidden clan residing in a forest. This clan was renowned for the immense maryoku they possessed, their longevity, as well as their intelligence. People from all over the world had been coming to them, asking for assistance or advice in their matters. The clan, though it was very small, remained preserved and lived peacefully in the forest.

It was until a dark entity spreading resentment and jealousy that the clan began to even more dwindle. Some members were killed by their own comrades and some were captured by those who feared their power – much like the history of hatred between human and mazoku. The people who survived, part of them chose to remain in the forest, while others travelled to find a better and safer environment.

Nevertheless, the dark entity did not stop working at that point. The clan was continuously being hunted, making those who remained faithful became extremists and those who left the clan became so disdainful towards the clan. The conflict between the two parties who were once one continued even until ages.

People passed down the history of this clan as a clan destroyed because of its own lust to control the world. Nobody knew where this clan had gone to or where the remaining people were. What was known was only that the clan had been dispersed all around the world that even descendants of this clan did not know they were ones.

* * *

The moment a green coach entered that castle gate, everyone held their breath and fell silent. People stood still at their places, directing their eyes towards the parking coach in front of the foyer. Shortly after, some people are running towards the coach with frightened expressions. It seemed so hard for them to suppress whatever emotion they felt and maintain a neutral expression.

"Yuuri!"

"Heika!"

Two voices shouted at the same time the moment the soldiers took out something like a portable bed from the coach – one of Anissina's few successful inventions.

The people wanted to crowd over, but a single bark from Gwendal was enough to make them snap out of it. Gwendal ordered the soldiers to quickly bring the Maou to his room and let Gisella to get whatever she needed to treat him. The people close to Gwendal, could immediately notice that there was additional strain on Gwendal's already strict attitude. It must be his concern for Yuuri that caused this.

It was total quietness as the King's advisors waited outside his room. The bandages on Yuuri's body were as if someone had tried to mummify him. Such sight terrifies everyone who truly cares for him. No one would like to lose their compassionate King. No, no one would even think of it.

An assistant of Gisella opened the door to the chamber and signalled that they might come in now. Wasting no other time, everyone stepped into the room, seeing almost no change in their King's condition.

"I have treated him with better herbs. It should be faster for the wound to recover and less painful for him. However, he still did not respond to my maryoku," Gisella reported as she stood up from kneeling beside the Maou and faced his advisors.

Before anyone could respond, the door was opened again and a young man who was always wearing matching attire with Yuuri came in. His face was serious or rather grave, unlike his usual cheery and – inappropriate – joking manner. With firm steps he reached Yuuri's bed and spared a moment to examine the Maou, sleeping with gasping breath.

Extending his hand, he touched Yuuri's forehead and closed his eyes, getting the feel of something.

"I can't feel Shibuya's soul..." he took back his hand.

"What?" Gunter, along with everyone else, was shocked.

"How is that even possible? Without his soul, Yuuri would... Yuuri... would..." Wolfram could not finish his sentence, too afraid if it came true.

"It is only his will which supports his body now," Murata bent his head, light glinting on his glasses.

"We need to find his soul or else, it will be dangerous for his physical body."

"But how are we supposed to do that?" Gunter asked hopelessly.

"Well, I guess someone important has come," Murata said, shifting his gaze to the door.

The door opened and two men appeared before them.

"I'm sorry for taking so long, Kakka," Yozak smiled while helping Conrart to walk.

"Yuuri..." Conrart muttered, walking and partially leaning on Yozak for support.

Conrart knew it was all Yuuri's doing for his sake; Yuuri had protected him again. The night when he parted with Gwendal and Yozak, some mysterious people tried to attack him and bind him with the same force as before. Conrart could feel the same strain. However, right at that moment, the necklace on him glowed and he no longer felt the strain. He could even defend himself and land some blows on them.

Conrart had been doing well until he started to feel exhausted as he was yet to fully recover. In addition, realising that whatever magic they use would have no effect on Conrart, the attackers used more and more physical method. Conrart was almost overwhelmed by them until he heard someone shouted for him.

Knowing that voice all too well, Conrart pushed himself even more because if these people were to use the same magic to Yozak, Yozak might get caught instead and he did not want that. With enhanced accuracy under such pressure, Conrart managed to wipe the enemies out. It was fortunate that they escaped before Conrart dropped to his knees.

Using his sword to support his body, he closed his eyes to calm his racing breath.

"Taichou! Are you okay?" Yozak rushed to Conrart's side the moment he found Conrart.

"Yeah... Just a little tired..." Conrart answered haltingly.

"You haven't fully recovered yet. I'm sorry, but we need to keep on walking. Sleeping here is very dangerous," Yozak put his hand on Conrart's shoulder.

"Yeah... I think I can manage that," Conrart smiled weakly to Yozak.

Skillfully, the orange-haired man guided his comrade to walk through the forest. It was harder for both of them now to avoid the traps and to notice the safe routes because it was already deep into the dark night. While fighting, Conrart had also travelled further into the forest and Yozak was not very familiar with that area. It took much longer for them to return to the entrance to the forest. By the time they reached there, it was already dawn.

Yozak wanted Conrart to rest a while, but he knew the moment they discovered that the young King had left for the castle, Conrart would insist to travel back to the castle straightaway. Arguing with Conrart at this kind of time would worsen the situation. So, Yozak decided that he would just go along with his friend's wish and help him on the way.

Luckily, Conrart did not ask much about Yuuri's condition as he was too preoccupied with thinking over Yuuri's safety. The trip to the castle had been silent, with Yozak following Conrart and watching over him. Yozak did not know how he should explain Yuuri's condition – if Conrart had asked him – without making Conrart more worried.

Now here they were in the Maou's chamber. Yozak let go of Conrart, he kneeled and took Gisella's position just now.

"Yuuri..." Conrart took Yuuri's hand and hold it with both of his hands.

"I'm back, I'm sorry I couldn't protect you..." Conrart looked at Yuuri's agonised face.

Gripping Yuuri's hand firmly, Conrart closed his eyes. Unknown to him, his necklace began to glow and a blue aura was transferred from Conrart's hand to Yuuri. It lasted for a few seconds only as suddenly, Conrart felt a weak movement of the small hand in his.

"Con... rad..." a soft whisper came in between gasps.

"Yuuri..?" Conrart opened his eyes widely, but he soon realised that Yuuri was yet to wake up.

Even so, there was a sudden flow of serenity in Conrart's heart, as though Yuuri himself had reached out to him and calm him. It sounded silly because the one in most pain was Yuuri, but indeed it was true because not only Conrart, but the others also felt the tenseness in the room was rather eased.

While they were not paying attention, Yuuri's face was getting less contorted because of pain. His breath was steadier than before, even if it was still faster than normal. At least, everyone was there with him and he was assured that they are all unharmed.

"Shall we let Shibuya rest first?" Murata broke the silence hanging in the air.

"There are some things I need to tell you and I'm sure Lord Weller also needs to rest," he continued as he saw the reluctance to leave the room in all eyes staring at him.

"Very well then," Gwendal finally responded and all of them moved slowly out of the room.

Wolfram, the second last person to leave the room, was surprised that he was able to prevent himself to blurt out his anger and sadness over Yuuri's condition. Maybe it was about time for him to mature and be more composed, though it might not sound like him at all. Nevertheless, indeed he let Conrart be the first to hold Yuuri's hand ever since Yuuri's return and he hold himself from panicking or making rash decisions.

Glancing at his brother who has not budged from his fiancé's side, he pulled a faint smile. Probably it was the last time he let Yuuri be with another person without calling him a cheater. He saw Conrart put back the von Wincott necklace on its rightful owner and then proceed to exit the room with him.

Conrart did not smile like how he usually did to Wolfram regardless of Wolfram's mood. Instead, he had tinge of worry and anger in his face. Wolfram did not comment at this because Wolfram knew the only time Conrart would be this serious was when someone important to him was hurt.

Together they walked down the corridor silently to the meeting room where everyone gathered.

* * *

In the meeting room, everyone gathered and waited for the Daikenja to speak.

"Lord von Voltaire, I need you to increase the guard in the castle," Murata began and Gwendal just looked at him with his stern face, demanding explanation without saying it out loud.

"There's a high possibility that they would attack this castle directly now that they took Yuuri's power," another statement raised the confusion.

"Geika, what do you mean by that?" Gunter questioned Murata who always knew everything but often kept things to himself until the right time according to him.

"Thousand years ago, there was a hidden clan..." so Murata told them the story of a clan.

"Contrary to the normal belief, this clan actually still exists even until today and those who remembered called them the Harbinger," Murata explained, "They have been waiting for the time when they can lure someone with great maryoku, so that they can absorb it and use it for their own purposes. In the past, they might have a pure intention of eradicating the dark entity, but nowadays, it has become more of a grudge."

"How did they manage to lure Heika to them?" Conrart could not think of what could make Yuuri walked without a care to his surroundings as he recalled what happened on the night when Yuuri went missing.

"Most probably, they have put a marking on Shibuya such that they can just summon him whenever they want. How they placed the marking, I'm also not sure. It can happen in any ways such as shaking hands or just touching."

"Then how did they absorb Yuuri's power? And what in the world would they do with it? What will happen to Yuuri then?" Wolfram was starting to get impatient at this revelation. None of them had learned about this. It was not even written in any manuscript.

"By forcing him to release his power, they can absorb it. They can use it to do whatever it is capable of, including destroying this castle. I would not be surprised if they would attack us first because Shin Makoku is a prominent kingdom in this world. If this power goes uncontrolled or taken too long from Shibuya..." Murata hesitated, "He might leave us for real."

Everyone was too stunned at the bitter truth to even gasp or said a word. This was new to all of them because none has ever heard about this clan. The clan was thought to be long forgotten, as such, people thought that there was no need to retell its story. There was no record of their abilities or heritage. The King's advisors have to fight this enemy blindly with their King's life on the line.

"Geika, what should we do then?" Gunter faced the only reliable source he had.

"Like I said, tighten the security and be prepared for them at any time. We must protect Shibuya at all costs."

"The only thing I know is that they used to pass down a crystal ball which likely was the one they used to contain Yuuri's maryoku. We should try to find it and make sure they don't exhaust Yuuri's maryoku in it," Murata added.

"Why can't we just search for that damn crystal ball?" Wolfram snapped.

"Well, Lord von Bielefeld, if you're willing to go through millions of crystal balls in the whole Shin Makoku, not to mention that the Harbinger is so good with disguise techniques such that we didn't realise they marked Shibuya, then please go ahead," Murata replied blandly to him.

"Ugh..." Wolfram was defeated, "Damn it!"

As everyone understood how critical the situation they faced and that nothing much can be done, they decided that it was best to just follow the Great Sage's plan and to personally guard Yuuri. Although they did not want the Harbinger to come to the castle – since they would invite more danger around Yuuri, they have no choice but to wait for it because that was the only way to save Yuuri.

* * *

Hi again readers!

Merry Christmas to those celebrating and happy new year in advance! Hope this year had been a fruitful one and I wish you all a wonderful year ahead! :)

_jayfeather63_: Thank you so much for your review! Glad to know you like my story. :) Hehe... I shall spend some time watching movies now. Hope you will continue to help me improve my story. Cheers! :D

Oh I've got more things to do for New Year, but I'll try to finish the next chapter by first week of Jan. So stay tuned and please review too!

Until next time! :)


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